Umbrella man

They used to peddle umbrellas for
Five dollars, maybe 3, hawking them 
Whenever it rained. Their tones insistent, 
A steady sales pitch of repetitions, Calling out the product they knew we Needed. You know you forgot it at home.
Umbrella... umbrella in the mellifluous 
Timbre of the African diaspora. We have
Umbrellas. Singing out faster, then 
Slurring the sound.They would say it Again, and again, umbrella, as if the words were part of the patter of the falling rain. "Umbrella. Umb-rella. Um-brellas. Five dollah. Who needs an umbrella today?" On a rainy day, this afternoon, Who doesn't need one. A small
Dark umbrella for three or five.

Timely

A part of a series about time

Timeliness is a way to stay 
In the present. Presently, I 
Will explain why it may be 
Good when you get time to
Stay in the right now, now.
Right now, I present you a
Case for time standing still.

Timing

Jot down the first thing that comes to your mind.

It used to be, I would say, all in
The timing. Ask the comedian.
The funny guys know just when
A pause will draw a laugh or a
Puzzled look. Puzzled looks are
All we get when the timing goes.
Time runs ragged and is lost or
Just hard to track. Sometimes.
It used to be all in the timing.

Time

Where has your time gone? 
How does yours slip away?
How does it morph, and
What makes it change?
How do you lose it in the 
Cracks between memory 
And distance? Why does
The time you feel feel 
So different from the time 
I know and have always
Known? My time tells a 
Straightforward story
No twists are taking it
Away from its narrow path
Yours veers right and left, 
Off by a half hour here, an 
Hour there. Sometimes it 
Homes in on a need or necessity 
That only reminds me of how 
Much time we both have lost

Extra-Ordinary

What are 5 everyday things that bring you happiness?

Five? Is that the magic number?
Everyday things, like sunshine or 
Clouds, like flowers, coffee mugs
Or a t-shirt I love because of the
Memories it conjures, is that the
Key? 5 ordinary, everyday things.
If they bring happiness, they are
Truly extraordinary.  Plainly not
Plain or everyday in the everyday 
Sense that everyday suggests. So
Much depends on the ordinary, the
Everyday. That is extraordinary!

A.B.C.s

Describe something you learned in high school.

In elementary school, you learn 
To read and write. By high school, 
You may have mastered thinking. 
Being philosophical is becoming 
To the teen. Thoughtful and full of
Thoughts with the ABCs as a sweet
Soft cushion to bolster axioms, to
Underpin creeds, and enforce the
Theories to which rampant ideas 
Give voice and credence. Dogma
And ideology do not endoctrinate
The freethinking being who, being
Human, hatches plots that connect
To all others in the world mankind
Shares. Philosophy is a special gift
Which might lead to wisdom in the
Advance of years. But for now be 
Content like the grinning Cheshire.
You are young. Everything is new.

Pets

What animals make the best/worst pets?

A spider is an unpleasant pet
I should think, though there's 
Charlotte to consider. Her web
Gave a child some pleasure. I
Would not be so happy with 
Web or insect for my pet, ugh.
A goat is cute in an angly way
But I believe it might be smelly.
Dogs and cats, cats and dogs-so
Common and conventional and
In need of so much attention. 
Great company, I know and very
Loving. Also so loveable. How
Much is that doggie on display?
A leash and collar, we go for a
Walk. Oh darn! Now it's raining.

Make believe

Will time fly and the cow jump
When the moon is just cheesy
And fairy-tales prattle on about
The real and the imagined so 
Little girls wonder if it's safe to
Grow up and little boys know 
They don't ever wanna. Some
One has to see the emperor
For who he is and keep the
Spoon at the ready when you
Serve our porridge. Everyone
Mustn't run away or follow a
Trail of bread crumbs to where
The witch awaits lost children.